Returns On Capital At Leejam Sports (TADAWUL:1830) Paint A Concerning Picture

If we want to find a potential multi-bagger, often there are underlying trends that can provide clues. Amongst other things, we'll want to see two things; firstly, a growing return on capital employed (ROCE) and secondly, an expansion in the company's amount of capital employed. Put simply, these types of businesses are compounding machines, meaning they are continually reinvesting their earnings at ever-higher rates of return. In light of that, when we looked at Leejam Sports (TADAWUL:1830) and its ROCE trend, we weren't exactly thrilled.

Understanding Return On Capital Employed (ROCE)

If you haven't worked with ROCE before, it measures the 'return' (pre-tax profit) a company generates from capital employed in its business. The formula for this calculation on Leejam Sports is:

Return on Capital Employed = Earnings Before Interest and Tax (EBIT) ÷ (Total Assets - Current Liabilities)

0.12 = ر.س226m ÷ (ر.س2.7b - ر.س739m) (Based on the trailing twelve months to September 2021).

So, Leejam Sports has an ROCE of 12%. On its own, that's a standard return, however it's much better than the 3.3% generated by the Hospitality industry.

See our latest analysis for Leejam Sports

In the above chart we have measured Leejam Sports' prior ROCE against its prior performance, but the future is arguably more important. If you'd like to see what analysts are forecasting going forward, you should check out our free report for Leejam Sports.

What Can We Tell From Leejam Sports' ROCE Trend?

On the surface, the trend of ROCE at Leejam Sports doesn't inspire confidence. Around five years ago the returns on capital were 26%, but since then they've fallen to 12%. However, given capital employed and revenue have both increased it appears that the business is currently pursuing growth, at the consequence of short term returns. If these investments prove successful, this can bode very well for long term stock performance.

In Conclusion...

In summary, despite lower returns in the short term, we're encouraged to see that Leejam Sports is reinvesting for growth and has higher sales as a result. Furthermore the stock has climbed 92% over the last three years, it would appear that investors are upbeat about the future. So should these growth trends continue, we'd be optimistic on the stock going forward.

One more thing, we've spotted 2 warning signs facing Leejam Sports that you might find interesting.

If you want to search for solid companies with great earnings, check out this free list of companies with good balance sheets and impressive returns on equity.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.